My Thoughts About Society

I must confess, I am not much of a pulpit pounder anymore. I accept people where they are, even if where they are is far from where God wants them to be. I cannot hold a non-Christian accountable to God’s standard if they do not know God. I agree with Romans 1:16, “For I am not the least bit embarrassed about the gospel. I won’t shy away from it, because it is God’s power to save every person who believes: first the Jew, and then the non-Jew”(The Voice). But I also understand the words of Romans 2:12, “For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law;” and I would not try to excuse anyone’s sin.

Societies have always run in cycles. People would find a new land and establish a government, which started out with the desire to follow scriptural and moral principles. For a couple hundred years, the system works. But, during that period an undercurrent of ungodliness always brews. Sooner or later, those cultures give in to unbiblical thinking and ungodliness. The only exceptions seem to be those countries that mandate a value system through intimidation and the threat of violence. To understand how a society fails one only has to read Romans 1:17-30. It is the slippery slope that every “free” society has proven true.

America was established through scriptural principles. That did not make us God’s nation as many seem to believe. God has had only one nation to date, and that nation also failed to live up to its side of the covenant.  Let’s be honest, America is no longer a “Christian” nation. At best, we are a nation that has a lot of Christians. We have followed history and gone down the slope with other nations, who remain huddled at the bottom of the slide. Revisionists are attempting to erase all signs of faith from our heritage so they can try to make people believe that the bottom of the slide is the “real” normal. They would have us believe that the bottom of the slide is actually the top, and Christians have had it backwards all along.

There are no continents left to inhabit. We cannot go away and start over. We must stay right here and help our society to reestablish the desire to find the grace of God. So, where do we go from here? Well, we accept the conclusion the writer of Romans came to in Romans 3:23; “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard” (NLT). Then, we have to dig our way out of the muck, one soul at a time. We can not approve of where people are, but we must accept that they are there if we have any chance of enacting Biblical change.

We must continue to preach Romans 3:25, “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood” (NLT).

The good news of the Romans 1:17-30 passage is that God did not allow the progression of sin because he was giving up on us. Neither did allowing it signify approval of any behavior. He let it happen with one goal: That people would realize their unhappiness and turn back to their love for God. It is never too late.

I will let others do the fighting, and the pulpit pounding. I am committed to being a safety net, so that when people fall flat, and they will, I will be one of those who stand in the wings to help catch them. Many gift mixes are needed, I am certain of that. I know my own gifts, and I know what the Lord has called me to do. How about you? Do you know how you have been called to serve the Lord in this sin-drenched world? It takes every believer, not just a hand full, to impact a world that is headed in the wrong direction.

The easiest thing for believers to do is to find fault in me, and the words I have shared. I am sure that some might, and somehow feel spiritually superior in doing just that. But whether you agree with the way I explained it or not, we must all agree with the conclusion: The world is in trouble, and we need to do everything that is Biblically authorized in bringing it back to a relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Part of Isaiah 9 We Skip Over In The Christmas Story

With the Christmas holiday, the prophecy found in Isaiah 9 becomes a key topic in churches throughout the world. We love to read those glorious words,

For to us a child is born,


to us a son is given,


and the government will be on his shoulders.


And he will be called


Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,


Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

(Isaiah 9:6-7 NIV)

The promises of the scripture give us strength as we ponder the power of the birth of Christ. We love to discuss what we are saved to… but we often miss the power of what we are saved from.

This week, Isaiah 9:4-5 captured my attention. It is a powerful text and deserves our attention. To grasp it’s meaning we must create a mental image of battle. Picture an army engaging in battle during the Isaiah the prophet’s lifetime. Soldiers walked great distances to reach the battlefront. Drones, bombs and grenade launchers were not available. They relied on Arrows and swords to defeat their enemy. Because of this, the soldier wore heavy armor complete with heavy breast plates, helmets, metal arm and leg protection, and armor coverings on their boots.

Movement of any kind could be painful, binding and pinching the skin. While the battle was raging, the soldier sweat profusely, cuts and scrapes could not be avoided, and shear exhaustion was the result. When soldiers withdrew from battle, their clothes would be drenched in sweat and blood. Their bodies were covered with sores, even if they escaped injury by enemy sword. Additional injuries were not dealt with until the day’s battle was over. This often added a great amount of extra blood, which soaked the soldier’s clothes. When they were finally able to retreat, even their boots were filled with sweat and blood. The next day, the soldier did not have a suitcase full of clean clothes. What they had on the previous day was what they had to wear that day. It is a gruesome picture but an accurate description of battle.

Sin has so many similarities to the picture of battle. We never enter into sin thinking that it will leave us bloodied, soaked, and exhausted. But, think about the actual effects of sin. Addiction, financial ruin, broken relationships, loss of health, and separation from all we hold dear are the real results of sin. Day in and day out we must wear the same garment of sin, and each day we are robbed of more of our existence, until there is nothing left to give.

The good news is that Christ came to offer salvation.

“For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,


you have shattered


the yoke that burdens them,


the bar across their shoulders,


the rod of their oppressor.”

Isaiah 9:4 NIV

When we accept Christ, the yoke of sin is shattered. The rod of our oppressor is broken. The bar across our chest and shoulders that carries the weight of guilt and shame is lifted from us.  The yoke of Christ replaces the yoke of sin. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls" (Matthew 11:29 NASB).

Why, after having the yoke of sin removed, would we want to have the yoke of Christ placed on us? It is for our own protection. Jesus said that if a demon is not replace by something else, it will just go and get ten more, and the problem will be even worse. Once we are safely in the yoke of Christ, he is able to carry our burden, and keep us from being recaptured.

Now, here is where this victory has its profound effect.

“Every warrior’s boot used in battle


and every garment rolled in blood

will be destined for burning,


will be fuel for the fire.”

(Isaiah 9:5 NIV)

The King James Version conveys the picture of this verse beautifully. “For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise.” What a great picture of a life in sin. But when the silence of redemption comes, our bloody, smelly garments are rolled up, and thrown into God’s consuming fire along with our worn out boots.

The Voice presents verse five like this:

“It’s true. All the fabric of war will go up in flames:


the troops’ heavy boots that stamped us down and their blood-soaked garb


Will all be burned beyond recognition or use.


There will be a new time, a fresh start.”

When we come to terms with what we have been saved from, the picture of what we have been saved for becomes all that much sweeter. We like to downplay sin as simply an error in judgment, or a poor choice, which we can walk away from any time we want. But look at the real effects of sin. We see it in broken lives, destroyed families, crushed hearts, and shattered lives. The yoke of sin is a burden that crushes us. We need help if our lives are to get any better. It is because of this that Isaiah wrote:

“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
 And the government will rest on His shoulders; 
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, 
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
 The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.”

(Isaiah 9:6-7 NASB)

Emily's Thankful Leaf

I got an email from my youngest daughter the other day. The family is building a thankful tree. Every day the grandkids tell momma what they are thankful for. She then writes the words on a leaf, and they hang it on the thankful tree. On this particular day her oldest child, Emily, said she was thankful for Grandpa's new knees. What an honor to be so loved by my grandkids that they would be thankful for my new knees.

Today, I need to remember to be as thankful as my grand daughter. It is a bit more difficult to be thankful on the days where the cobalt and plastic, don't feel very good inside of my legs. The healing process takes time, and I want it to be better right now.

Being thankful is therapeutic. It takes the focus off of the pain and directs our focus on a different subject. Being thankful activates your mind, brings strength to your body, and produces joy in your spirit. How many times have you visited a person in a nursing home or hospital thinking you were going to lift their spirits only to have them lift yours. The person you visited has been through the problems and the pain. They live with it every day. Yet they decide that being thankful is a better way to live.

I remember my younger years. Back then, I could be much more thankful than I seem to be today. It is so easy to focus on the internal pain, and the problems around us. Perhaps that is a reason why Jesus held a child and said, "Unless you become like one of these, you will not enter the kingdom." Life isn't so difficult that I can't be thankful. So what if I have to sit down and wrap my knee in ice. So what if I don't have the stamina to stand on my feet for long periods of time. This pain is only temporary.

So today, I have decided that I am thankful for my life, a wonderful wife, a great family, the roof over my head, good friends, and oh yes, new knees.

Who Are You When You Think Nobody Is Looking

We all have a public persona, the way we want others to view us. We have our Religious persona, the way we want people to view us at church. It would be nice if those two persona's were the same, but quite often they are not.

There is a third persona, the person we are when we think nobody is looking. I used to have young people that I worked with say, "Come on Mr Bittner, when you hit your thumb with a hammer, what do you say?" My response is a very loud, "OUCH!" This is of course followed by, "Yeah, but what if nobody is around. Don't you let off with a cuss word or two?" "Oh, when nobody is around, I do say it differently. OUCH THAT HURTS!"

We have been challenged to the core recently. Our family income situation has gone through a very unplanned change. Lightning hit our house, charing some of the electrical lines. And, I went through knee replacement surgery.

I approached the surgery with as good of an attitude as possible (having already had one knee replacement, I knew what I was in for). But, pain and hospital stays are not my strong suit. I tried to be nice, not let the nursing staff suffer my wrath.

In the middle of my hospital stay, Kim had to leave (a job related thing). Apparently on her way out of town she stopped at Sprinkles (a well known cupcake shop in the area) and bought cupcakes for the 3rd floor nursing staff, a special thank you for the care they were giving.

For two of the tree-day hospital stay, a young 30'something nurse named Ray (her Tagalog name was much longer) took care of me. She was very kind, and considerate. She seemed very dedicated to my comfort and I was grateful to have her take care of me. The night nurse was a young man named Michael who was equally caring. Perhaps the most patient of all was an aid name Maria. She was particularly kind because I dropped a full Urine bottle three different times in one day. It made quite a splash but she never flinched. All of this is to say that life has not been smooth lately. We have been hit by trial upon trial. Through it all, what are we like? I was about to find out.

The day before checking out, Ray came into the room. She informed me that she would be off the next day and that she would miss taking care of me. Then she said something that really shook me into a new reality. "I am very interested in getting to know Jesus. I think that you are the person to help me. Could you please send me a book that will help me know Jesus the way you know him?"

How did she know? Did she Google me? Did she read my blogs? I do not remember much, if any, discussion about my faith. Yet at my worst, she still knew.

Faith is apparently not determined people's acceptance or rejection, lightning strikes, jobs, titles, or income. It is not shaped by pain level or a body that has needed major surgery each year for the last five years. It is refreshing to know that when I am at my worst, people who look still see that Christ in me, is my hope of Glory.

Who are you when you think nobody is looking?

Theology: For Beginners

The education system does not take a five year olds, and place them in high school. They know that a child must start from the beginning, and pass K through 8 first. New Believers need a Theology book for beginners. A book that explains theology in simple terms. Discover why going to church is important, why we sing, and take an offering. Learn the Biblical theology of the sermon, and the Lord's Supper.

We do the same things over and over at our church, but why? Do you know why? Leave Greek words, commentaries, and Lexicons until later. Learn the basic first. Build a solid theological foundation, then the rest will take care of itself.

Perhaps that is what Jesus meant when he spoke about wise and the foolish man. The wise man built his house on the firm foundation of the rock. The foolish went for beach front property, so he built his house on the sand. Understanding what goes on in church is building your spiritual house on the rock.
Basic theology from The Art of Worship will give you that solid foundation,

If you invited a friend to church, and they asked you why your church did a certain thing, would you know how to answer them? The Art of Worship will give you the answers to those questions, delivered in a completely understandable way.

Click this link to order your copy: www.2t2ministries.org.

A New Project For Men's Ministries

          Women's ministries thrive in churches across the country. No matter the size of the church, Women find strength in each other. There are groups for women with small children, women who have special talents, make quilts, and enjoy deeper studies in the Bible. Women's study guides, and women's devotionals, and specialty books for women line the shelves of bookstores. But try to find a good group study guide for men, and the picking is much slimmer.
          Gut Checks For Guys is a nine week study series that helps men grow in Christ, as well as grow between brothers. A Gut Check is something that affects us down deep. When we feel something in our gut, called splankna in the Bible, in changes us.
          Gut Checks change who we are, and how we deal with life. They stirs us and force us to look at our behavior, beliefs, and actions. When men talk to other men about being men, then Godliness is the result. We become better disciples, more loving husbands, greater models for our children, and better employees on the job. When men dig deep and open their lives to each other, real Christian growth takes place.
          This book includes videos from unusual sources, opportunities to laugh, chances to set goals. It allows men to begin laying the groundwork for deeper relationships with other men. Gut Checks For Guys can be used with individual small groups, or in a large group setting, through whole group activities followed by table group discussions.
          Take a look at the table of contents, and consider whether it will be valuable with the men's ministry program in your church. Before it goes into full publication, 2t2 Ministries would like to have a men's group volunteer to try the book on.  Will your men's ministry be the one to take the Gut Checks For Guys challenge?

Chapter 1      Feeling It Down Deep

            Compassion, Not Particularly A Manly Topic

            Opinions Define Religion, Passion Shapes It

            What Is Manliness

           

Chapter 2      Check Your Priorities

            How Hobbies Become Obsessions

            Knowing When to Slow Down

            Making sure the main thing stays the main thing

Chapter 3      Fantastic at Faking It

            The Fake It till you Make It Syndrome

            Don’t let others see Our weakness

            A Call For Integrity

Chapter 4      Keep It Real

            The Freeing Effect of Truth

            Honesty Does not Equal Failure

            My Weakness may be Your Strength- That makes us Both Better

Chapter 5      I Don’t Want To Talk About It

            Stress

            The Need For Relationship

            Doctors are for Men Too

            Mortality and Estate Planning

           

Chapter 6      The Real Difference Between Men And Women

            Men Talk Results, Women Talk Process

            Men Want Action, Women Want Attention

            Men Gather Things, Women Gather Relationships

Chapter 7      Real Men Don't Ignore, They Adapt

            Listening to Our Bodies

            Changing Careers

            Altering the Way We Do Things

            Pacing Ourselves    

Chapter 8      Yes, We’re Open

            The Freeing Effect of Openness

            Openness with your spouse (Don’t keep her guessing)

            Finding others with similar needs

                       

Chapter 9      Where Will You Be On Father’s Day?

            Man Up

            Show Jesus to Our Kids

            Representing Jesus in the Workplace

            Making Time for Ministry

Another Black Eye For An Incredible Educational System

            It grieves me to read another story of a teacher who overstepped her boundaries, and defying all reason did the unfathomable. Laura Elizabeth Whitehurst of Redlands gave birth to a child on June 18^th. The child is said to be fathered by one of her students, who at the time was sixteen-years old.

            The damage inflicted by this woman will not be undone. If she is found guilty, she needs to pay the legal consequences. But this post is not really about Whitehurst, because she is just one of a string of teachers who have made really bad choices. Instead, this post is about all of the other teachers.

            Every day, for nine months of the year, our children are taught by incredible, skilled, educated, caring teachers. They live under constant scrutiny, and rarely receive the appreciation they deserve. Test scores the students receive on standardized tests are used for judging their success on any given year. There is no appreciation that these teachers are doing the best they can with the students they have been given.

            They plan all summer, when others think they are on vacation. They work though Christmas, and Easter Breaks. They take work home, and are constantly assessing the work that is turned in.  They do all this because they love what they do. They live for the “Aha” moments, when the light turns on and a student “gets it”. I have been a part of education from the inside, and I have watched it from the outside. These tireless workers deserve our appreciation.

            Here is a thought for parents. Pay attention to what your students are doing with their teachers. Praise the progress. Question the unusual. Be involved in your child’s education. Visit the campus. Take some time off to attend the parent teacher conferences. Volunteer to help in the classroom. In the years that I was in the education, this almost never happened.

            Prayer may not be allowed in the classroom, but to date there is no law against it in your home. Pray for the teachers. Bathe your kids in prayer as they go out the door. Intercede for them all day long. Teach them the ways that they should go and monitor their progress. Raising children is difficult. We need all the help we can get.

            I cannot vouch for anything that happened in Redlands, CA, and I have no desire to pass judgment on the boy’s family. The reality is that as long as people are involved in any situation, something is bound to go wrong.  However, if we are vigilant, and involved, rewarding our teachers for a job well done, then issues like this are a lot less likely to arise.

The Art of Worship- On Baptism

The following is a small excerpt from my book, The Art of Worship (2t2 Ministries). A friend raised the question about baptism in Linked4Ministry, a discussion page for church leaders. I posted this excerpt and decided to post it on this blog as well. The book is available on line, and in all ebook formats.

In Exodus 12 God spoke to Moses to reveal that he had one more plague to bring on the people. He had already turned water to blood, sent gnats, flies, locusts, and frogs, turned the skies dark, killed livestock, rained hail and fire, and gave people boils. But now this last plague was an important one. In this plague, God revealed that he was going to kill the firstborn of every family. This was the beginning of what came to be known as the Passover. They were told to take an unblemished lamb and kill it at twilight. “Moreover, they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which they eat it” (v. 7). Then in verse 12–13, God explains why. “For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—it is the Lord’s Passover. And the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.”

         There was nothing special about the blood they used. It did not have any special powers. It was only a “sign.” One might have said, “Look I am a Jew; that should be enough. Putting blood on my doorpost sounds to me like we are being saved by our works. God saves me, not the blood on the doorpost, so if I don’t apply the blood to my doorpost, God will still save me.”

            What would have happened to anyone who did not apply the blood as directed? They would have died! But the blood was only a sign. Why would they have died? Ah, we come down to the real issue of what God was asking of his people. The blood on the doorpost was an act of obedience for all who believed in the Lord. Their faithful obedience provided their salvation.

            We honor those who were obedient during the Passover. We praise their faith, and we recognize that the blood was simply a sign of their submission. Yet, so many fail to make the connection that baptism is an act of faithful obedience as well. Are we so willing to throw baptism out and risk the consequences when Jesus makes his final “pass” over us?

            Baptism is the believer’s act of faithful obedience—a willingness to publically share the grave with Jesus, and be raised with him that we may share his resurrection and walk in a new life. This act of faithful obedience is also a powerful act of worship.

            Baptism was not a new idea born in the church. The Jews baptized non-Jewish peoples who came to the Jewish faith. They did so by immersion, and by rule, baptism (mikveh) had to be done in at least 40 sa’ah”, which is about two hundred gallons. That was enough water to bury the repentant person fully.

            The baptism of Jesus showed his obedience to his own father. An act of worship caused Jesus to go under the water and come back up out of the water. The result of his worship was that the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove. As the dove landed on Jesus, the Father spoke from heaven saying, “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well-pleased” (Matthew 3:13–17).

            Before the baptism of Jesus, when was the last time that the entire Trinity was involved in a single event with their individual roles described? The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were all involved in creation. You would be hard pressed to find any other passages in Scripture between creation and baptism (the picture of re-creation). The important point here is that this act of worship, the baptism of Jesus, was a very important event in the ministry of Jesus.

            Water baptism was not the only baptism described in the New Testament. In Mark 10, Jesus described a baptism of suffering. Jesus was referring to his obedience to the cross. He mentioned it again in Luke 12:49–50.

            The phrase, “baptize . . . with the Holy Spirit and fire” is also used in Matthew 3:11–12. Those words were spoken by John, who described his baptism as being of water, but that Jesus would unleash fire when the Holy Spirit was given—which was fulfilled at the beginning of Acts.

            So many New Testament passages speak of baptism. It is our blood on the doorpost, the act of obedience before we are ushered into the land of promise. But how is baptism an act of worship? When we are baptized, our worship is being expressed on three levels: